Dallas, Texas

"I think I see Pete coming up the road there", loosening his grip on Ace's reins to point towards the mailman, Bobby informed his wife of something he knew she'd want to hear.

"Would you mind if we rode out to meet him?" looking hopeful, Pam responded as expected. It had been just over a week since she'd mailed a letter to her daddy in California and she was expecting a response any day now.

Tilting his head towards the driveway, he smiled and led the way, "let's go".

Not far from the house and stables thanks to Pam's relative newness to riding, it didn't take them long to reach the end of the driveway.

"Pete", greeting their local mailman, receiving a friendly, "Bobby, Mrs Ewing", and a nod in return, he enquired, "anything in there for Pam?"

Shuffling through the stack of letters in his hands, ready to post through the mailbox slot, Pete took a few seconds to come back with an answer but when he did it wasn't one they wanted to hear, "no, I'm afraid not".

"Thanks", looking and sounding dejected, Pam thanked Pete and looked away, staring off into the distance.

"Thanks Pete", noticing Pam had relaxed her grip on her reins and her horse was beginning to wander on her own, he said a quick goodbye and followed his wife.

Catching up without any issue, he did his best to offer an explanation to make her feel better, "honey, it could be any number of things, the mail could be slow coming from California, he could have sent it to Cliff or your Aunt Maggie".

"Or he could be upset", offering a different explanation, Pam's feelings on the subject were obvious.

"Let's not jump to conclusions", not convinced that enough time had passed for them to assume anything about Digger's thoughts, he tried again to be the level-headed one in the discussion.

"That's easy for you to say", sulking, Pam appeared determined to assume the worst.

"Yeah, because we just don't know. Give it a few more days", explaining himself, he encouraged her to at the very least wait a while before deciding her daddy was angry.

"Ok", agreeing, either because she was sick of his positivity or because he'd convinced her, she offered him a weak smile, which wasn't much, but was something.

"Good", satisfied, he left their discussion at that for now, silently leading them back around the paddock they'd been riding the perimeter of.

Following the straight fence line, commanding Ace and Midnight to walk rather than jog or lope, seemingly out of nowhere Pam's panicked screams pierced the soft sound of the wind blowing over the ranch, causing him to look back, just as she lost a fight with what looked to be a very spooked horse.

"Pam!" watching as Midnight bolted, luckily with no physical connection to Pam any longer, he halted Ace, dismounted, and rushed to his wife's side, scared and worried about the state he'd find her in when he got closer.

Later that evening, after anxiously pacing around the Braddock Emergency waiting room for a long while, he was finally able to relax a little as a doctor announced to Pam, "you're very lucky Mrs Ewing".

"My baby's ok?" sitting up in her hospital bed, Pam looked up at the doctor and asked him to clarify that she wasn't the only lucky one.

"Yes, you and your baby appear to be just fine", smiling reassuringly, the doctor reiterated to them that she hadn't suffered the same fate as Sue Ellen had a few months ago, something they'd both feared as she'd laid on the grass in pain earlier in the day and weeks prior in a pile of hay in the stables.

"Oh thank you", breathing an audible sigh of relief, Pam sounded the way he felt, which was reassuring in more ways than the obvious. She'd made no secret of her conflicting emotions regarding motherhood and it truly was wonderful to hear her speak in such a maternal tone. It was clear to him that as much as she felt unready and rushed, she wasn't completely detached from their child, which was progress.

Letting them have a moment to enjoy the good news he'd delivered, the doctor then turned serious as he addressed Pam again, "two falls in a month is two more than ideal though. I must urge you to be careful and consider the risks associated with what you're doing day-to-day".

"I will", sheepish, Pam committed to the doctor's recommendation without hesitation.

"Don't worry doc, she won't be doing anything that could harm her or the baby from now on, I'll make sure of it", speaking up himself, he made a similar commitment to Pam, aware that he had a part to play in what she did and didn't do. Thinking about it now, he could acknowledge he'd probably known going out riding wasn't a great idea, but he hadn't thought too much about it until something had gone wrong and she'd ended up in the emergency room again; now that he knew though, she wouldn't be testing her luck further if he had anything to say about it.

"I'm glad to hear that. However, I will say, there's no reason to be overly cautious; pregnant women can do what they normally would as far as everyday activities go so long as there is some forethought regarding what could happen if something was to go wrong. I wouldn't recommend Mrs Ewing stop any and all exercise, it's perfectly healthy for her to continue with physical fitness, it's just activities that may have an extreme impact should they go awry that should be avoided. In this case, I'd advise against climbing ladders or riding horses but things like swimming or jogging should be just fine". Addressing the two of them, the doctor revised his advice, seemingly warning him against being too strict with Pam as to what she could and couldn't do, and advising them of what needn't be argued.

"Thank you, we'll keep that in mind", answering for the both of them, Pam seemed content with what had been said. She didn't need to be on bedrest for the remainder of her pregnancy, she just needed to be aware of her surroundings and how different activities could be hazardous in her state; it was sensible advice and it seemed to satisfy her.

To be continued…